1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for distribution of seasonings, e.g., seasonings as placed on potato chips, corn chips, and like snack foods or for distribution of similar granular/powdered materials which are required to be evenly distributed in accurately metered quantities.
2. Prior Art
Practically all snack foods known today contain seasonings of one form or the other on their surface. Examples include potato chips seasoned with salt, barbeque flavoring, sour cream and onion flavoring, etc. Corn chips and other snack foods are also similarly seasoned. The distribution of such seasoning greatly affects not only the product quality, but the economy of manufacturing. Almost all seasonings vary in their flow properties. The metering of seasonings is important to insure that only the proper amounts of seasonings are applied and the distribution of seasonings is important to see that the seasonings are evenly distributed over the product. Certain seasonings in favor with consumers of potato chips, for example, barbeque, sour cream and onion seasoning, are sticky, lumpy and very difficult to dispense. Not only those seasonings, but all seasonings present difficult problems in metering and control.
It is known in the art to apply seasonings from a hopper through a metering tube. U.S. Pat. No. 3,186,602 discloses a metering tube having concentric large and small augers rotating independently to provide both metering and distribution functions. Metered seasoning exits the tube from the open end. Acrison, Inc., of Moonhachie, N.J., supplies commercially available equipment in which a motor-driven auger extends through the side of a hopper and through a relatively short measuring tube, e.g., a tube about two feet long. With proper attention to engineering principles, the amount of material can be metered out the end of the tube with some degree of accuracy. In a new Acrison, Inc. arrangement after the seasoning is metered in a measured quantity out the end of the tube there is a movable flap which contacts and attempts to distribute the metered material uniformly.
There is, however, a need in the art to both meter accurately and dispense uniformly by the same apparatus without utilizing separate movable parts such as a flapping distributor and for efficiently and effectively handling seasoning powders which tend to form clumps.